The Gift of Israel

Why I’m fortunate to be living in Israel.

Seth Godin isn’t a rabbi, but the prolific author, entrepreneur and founder of permission marketing has a lot of insightful and inspiring points in his book Linchpin that overlap with Jewish wisdom. It was one of the best mussar shmoozes (inspirational talks) I’ve been privy to in a while.

One of the chapters of his book begins with this graphic:

Didn’t.

Period.

We may have all the rationalizations and reasons that explain why we haven’t done that dream project, but that’s all they are – rationalizations to get us off the hook from taking the scary plunge.

That graphic summed up so perfectly what happened to the idea of writing a blog for Aish.com. The Aish.com team has bounced this idea around for years (yes, years) of having an editor’s blog that would discuss a whole hodge-podge of issues – controversies related to the site, perspectives on issues facing the Jewish world, applying Jewish wisdom to contemporary life, and to also give a human face behind the Aish.com machine.

But every time I set out to start, the objections in the back of my head poured forth: no one will be interested, you don’t have the time, what do you really have to say anyway?

Well, that inner voice may be right – but it’s usually dead wrong. In the words of Seth Godin, “Fight the resistance.” This is your lizard brain [aka the yetzer hara] talking. Don’t give him an inch.

So I am embarking on this blog; I view it as an opportunity to start a conversation with Aish.com readers. Feel free to comment, argue, and let me know what you think, and I will appreciate any questions or comments you have about content and videos up on the site. I read all the comments that are submitted to the site.

Our Home, Israel

Next week is Yom HaAtzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day, and it got me thinking about why I am grateful to be living in Israel and all the reasons that I connected with centered around the idea that Israel is our home.

Remember that feeling when you were a kid of coming home after school knowing that your mom and dad will be there, to shelter you, love you, console you. You’re home, under your parents’ protective wings. I don’t know if everyone will relate to this idea, but living in Israel is like living in the Almighty’s home. You can feel His presence more easily here. You’re not alone. He’s right here. (It helps to have your office overlook the Kotel, but not essential.) The spiritual connection is so palpable here.

Home is where everyone is family. We all feel connected since the barber, the grocery clerk, the taxi driver – they’re all your Jewish brothers and sisters. So we argue, we care, we pray for each other, we get involved. Complete strangers on the bus will tell you what you need to be doing differently in raising your child. The informality can sometimes be viewed as chutzpah but it’s really an expression of familial bonds.

Home means this is where I belong. Nothing is foreign to me. In Israel the rhythms of daily life are Jewish. The entire country is clearing out chametz and eating matzah on Passover. The language of my people is being spoken. My kids can grow up not knowing who Santa Claus is. I don’t feel that I am raising my kids submerged in a foreign, corrosive culture. I’m not naïve – I realize Israel isn’t a perfect place and my kids are not living in a bubble, but you can’t compare the billboards in Jerusalem to the billboards in Los Angeles and New York.

And home is where you plant your roots and invest for the long term. It’s where we are building the future of the Jewish people. And it’s not one of those new pre-fab homes in the suburbs; it’s our ancestral home we are building. Living in Israel you are surrounded by Jewish history. It’s so much easier to vividly feel the wheels of Jewish destiny churning, moving forward as we work to fulfill our national mission of being a light unto nations. Living here forces me to ask myself what I am personally contributing to the Jewish People. It’s where Jewish history and Jewish destiny come to life.

These are some of thoughts I’ll be feeling on Yom HaAtzmaut as I appreciate the precious gift and enormous challenge the Almighty has given us by living in our homeland.

I’m just scratching the surface here. In the comment section below, include your reasons for appreciating Israel.

Visitor Comments: 23

(18)
Brian A.Donnelly,
May 13, 2014 10:52 AM

From Sydney to Jerusalem.

As a devout Christian, and therefore a staunch supporter of Israel and the jewish people, I am overjoyed with the reality of visiting Israel for the first time in July this year ( 5774 ).I am excited because I know this is where G-d's chosen people are meant to be living and carrying out G-d's plan for the World.Over the years I have been associated with groups such as Christians for Israel - this wonderful organisation puts into action G-d's imperative to both "comfort ye, comfort ye My people" and has helped many thousands make Aliyah.I also feel the real need that Israel has to support and sustain those many thousands that have been obedient to G-d's command and returned 'home to Israel'. I am in total admiration for the many grass roots organisations that are dedicating themselves to helping this transition become a reality.I would like to encourage all of your readers by assuring them that there are already large numbers of Goyim, like me, and these numbers are growing, who "get it" and feel blessed to be able to help in some small way to make G-d's eternal plan happen that much sooner.Please look for me as we walk the streets of Jerusalem for those 2 weeks during July and know that we love you and care for you.Shalom.

(17)
Yehudit,
May 7, 2014 5:40 AM

Israel is my HOMEAND !

Israel is my HOMELAND ! I've been there only two times, but the holiness in the air and the closeness to HaShem I felt so very strongly! The first time I went to the Kotel I cried from joy and overwhelming emotion that I was Home at last! Alas, it was just for a visit, but I still have the memories and feelings of Israel in me constantly. I love Israel greatly. Like I said, Israel is my Homeland, and I'll never forget the feelings.

(16)
Beverly Kurtin,
May 4, 2014 3:29 AM

Would be nice but...

It is a shame that people who were young when Israel was founded are now, well, more mature. Okay, we're OLD(er). I understand that. We're supposed to have made enough and saved enough to afford to set foot in Israel. Well, I did! And then in 2008...my life's savings went down the tubes along with millions of others'. Now, there are trips for young people to go to Israel and that is wonderful. Alas, for those of us who don't have the wherewithal to afford a ticket to fly there, although maybe I could afford to fly from Texas to perhaps...okay, to Oklahoma...but I'll have to parachute out over Ardmore which is just a tad north of the Red River.The fact that so many of us will never get to visit or make Aliah.It is understandable that Israel isn't in a position to bring a bunch of people who can't even afford a ticket to the country. They have enough problems and I respect that. Still, I was only seven when Israel was founded, so I do feel left out at times.My main concern is that the United States is no longer a democracy; it has become an oligarchy over the past few years. Our so-called "representatives" no longer listen to the American people, they listen only to the people who can pour millions of dollars into their coffers. The far religious and political right are increasingly in the fore. Unless the American people pull us back to the center or to the left, this country is ripe for becoming a fascist state. If that does happen, it won't augur well for us Jews--it never does.I pray I am wrong, wrong, wrong. But history leans that way.As President Lincoln said, "At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide." We ARE committing national suicide.

(15)
Anonymous,
May 3, 2014 3:22 AM

i pray soon to return to Yisrael

You are bless to be living in Yisrael close to Ha Shem.

(14)
Katie,
May 2, 2014 9:34 PM

Although I am not Jewish, I read your website daily (I am so hooked on it!) I would love to visit Israel and hope to do so in the next few years. I have often wondered how it would feel to live in the actual site where The Almighty spoke His first words to the Jewish nation. It is definitely a challege raising a family when so much darkness surrounds us.

(13)
Danielle,
May 2, 2014 3:26 AM

Reaching out to make your dreams come true

Ever since I was 12 when I first visited Israel I've been dreaming of the day that I will return there forever. Its been a couple of years now that I've played with the idea and looks like it'll be real soon! Hopefully very soon ill be part of the blessed ones to call Israel my home:)

(12)
Leah Abramowitz,
May 1, 2014 11:33 PM

Ditto

I can't but agree with you, Nechemia. Sometimes I have to pinch myself that i and my family after so many years of exile are the privileged ones, that we're the generation, without any special merit on our part, to live in this country, after so many Jews could only face East and pray for that opportunity. I think you are fulfilling your wish to find your way to contribute in a special way to our homeland -- the Aish web is so effective and so important for so many people. You can be genuinely proud of its accomplishments.

(11)
john,
May 1, 2014 8:56 PM

Good 4 You

Being a christian' I really enjoy and learn much from Aish.com,...Good 4 You Rabbi for leaping out into new territory with a blog....which is also good 4 us.....I saw Israel more vividly from your words today. Bless you tremendously....and for me I also say..."here's to next year in Jerusalem"

Ronda,
May 4, 2014 4:39 AM

Next year in Jerusalem

As I was reading thru the comments I couldn't help but to come back to yours. I too plan on going to Jerusalem next year during the time of the last blood moon. After reading this, I had thoughts of moving there. Maybe in the near future. Shabbat Shalom

(10)
Anonymous,
May 1, 2014 7:44 PM

superficial

your kids can grow up in lakewood and also not know santa claus and billboards. these are not the reasons to live in israel.

Anonymous,
May 2, 2014 11:47 AM

not the point

i don't believe that was the Rabbi's main point. He was writing about why he's grateful to live in Israel, not the reasons he lives there. The examples he gave, I believe, are just positive results of living in the Holy Land.And just as a side point - Lakewood is a bubbled community within a foreign country while Israel, though not perfect, is the Jewish Homeland and does not kid itself or its people.Shabbat Shalom!

(9)
Sara,
May 1, 2014 7:25 PM

grateful new olah!

made aliyah with my family 2 months ago!words cannot describe the gratitude I feel for having the opportunity to live here.

"Kol Dodi Dofek: Listen - My Beloved Knocks!"

(8)
Yaffa,
May 1, 2014 6:29 PM

Home, Holy, Redemption

Home. Yes, the Land of Israel is Home. We have been here almost fifty years and every day has been a precious gift. Every morning, we are embraced by G-d. Each day I speak to "my" hills, my flowers, my fields, my cities.... and my people who are sometimes maddening, but always mine. G-d gave me the challenge and the opportunity to come, to His palace, His Home, and I was privileged and humbled to be the recipient of His gift. And I am privileged and humbled to be living under Jewish sovereignty , flawed and imperfect as it may - at the moment - be. Give us more time. We'll get it right. And I pray that our brethren who so far have chosen not to come home, will have a change of heart before G-d decides they have missed the boat. Here's to Am Yisrael and Medinat Yisrael!

(7)
Ann,
May 1, 2014 6:01 PM

Time to come back home

We made alyah a few months ago with 5 kids and a 3weeks old baby, because it was time for us to leave Egypt and live our jewish life to the fullest; every day here is a blessing, every bird and flower are under God's protection; and watching our children becoming israeli kids is a real blessing; now is time for all of you Jews from Golders Green, Boro Park, Lakewood, Antwerp, or Paris to come back home!! There is a place for every jew in Eretz Israel

(6)
Hector Olivera,
May 1, 2014 4:27 PM

Hope to make aliyah

I spen the first 20 yars of my life in Mexico and the last 50 in the USA. I found late in life that I my ancestors were converted by force to Christianism but I always felt afinity to Judaism. I am presently trying to learn Hebrew and my hope is to make it to Israel eventually. Rabbi Coopersmith, your blog is superb! Shalom

(5)
jerusalem mom,
May 1, 2014 2:12 PM

baruch Hashem

We finally made aliyah 6 months ago and we're so happy we're finally here.I wake up every morning thankful to be living in our holy city -a place our ancestors spent their lives dreaming of one day seeing and I feel so privileged to be able to live here!

(4)
Avi,
May 1, 2014 1:57 PM

Want 2nd Class?

Many people want to get the best they can get, and our Sages explain that Israel is the best "vineyard" for the "vine" called Bnei Yisrael.

(3)
Anonymous,
May 1, 2014 1:03 PM

Yasher Koach!

When you ask yourself what you're personally doing to contribute to the Jewish people, Rabbi Coopersmith, you can answer: a huge amount. This blog is wonderful, and Aish.com is a precious resource. Thank you!

(2)
Lisa,
May 1, 2014 11:05 AM

Some rationalizations are real!!

Some can't leave their elderly parents....to me that's very real.How lucky you are that you & your family live in Israel, the land Hashem gave us!! And how lucky you are to have a dream job!! Kol Hakavod!!

Avi,
May 1, 2014 1:56 PM

Yet how real are they?

"Some can't leave their elderly parents"- why can't they? Some might use it as an excuse to not come to Israel, but if you tell me that they can't sleep at night because they can't make Aliyah or that they raise their kids with real Zionism and visit Israel a-lot, if you tell me that there is no other way but for them to stay in America, if you tell me they tried everything, maybe, but also when you are Mechalel Shabbat it is supposed to hurt, even if it is to save someone's life.

Ayelet,
May 1, 2014 2:52 PM

?

No it's not... Where did you get that from? Doing Hashem's Will in the moment is what He expects of us, and this can and should bring us much joy.

shadchun,
May 1, 2014 3:07 PM

u r lucky, period

i don't think u r correct in questioning Lisa, in the way u r doing it. u come across haughty and privilaged.!!! what you should be doing is, empathizing with her and giving her her and all of klal yisroel a brocha and pray for us.

I'm told that it's a mitzvah to become intoxicated on Purim. This puzzles me, because to my understanding, it is not considered a good thing to become intoxicated, period.

One of the characteristics of the at-risk youth is their use of drugs, including alcohol. In my experience, getting drunk doesn't reveal secrets. It makes people act stupid and irresponsible, doing things they would never do if they were sober. Also, I know a lot about the horrible health effects of abusing alcohol, because I work at a research center that focuses on addiction and substance abuse.

Also, I am an alcoholic, which means that if I drink, very bad things happen. I have not had a drink in 22 years, and I have no intention of starting now. Surely there must be instances where a person is excused from the obligation to drink. I don't see how Judaism could ever promote the idea of getting drunk. It just doesn't seem right.

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Putting aside for a moment all the spiritual and philosophical reasons for getting drunk on Purim, this remains an issue of common sense. Of course, teenagers should be warned of the dangers of acute alcohol ingestion. Of course, nobody should drink and drive. Of course, nobody should become so drunk to the point of negligence in performing mitzvot. And of course, a recovering alcoholic should not partake of alcohol on Purim.

Indeed, the Code of Jewish Law explicitly says that if one suspects the drinking may affect him negatively, then he should NOT drink.

Getting drunk on Purim is actually one of the most difficult mitzvot to do correctly. A person should only drink if it will lead to positive spiritual results - e.g. under the loosening affect of the alcohol, greater awareness will surface of the love for God and Torah found deep in the heart. (Perhaps if we were on a higher spiritual level, we wouldn't need to get drunk!)

Yet the Talmud still speaks of an obligation on Purim of "not knowing the difference between Blessed is Mordechai and Cursed is Haman." How then should a person who doesn't drink get the point of “not knowing”? Simple - just go to sleep! (Rama - OC 695:2)

All this applies to individuals. But the question remains - does drinking on Purim adversely affect the collective social health of the Jewish community?

The aversion to alcoholism is engrained into Jewish consciousness from a number of Biblical and Talmudic sources. There are the rebuking words of prophets - Isaiah 28:1, Hosea 3:1 with Rashi, and Amos 6:6, and the Zohar says that "The wicked stray after wine" (Midrash Ne'alam Parshat Vayera).

It is well known that the rate of alcoholism among Jews has historically been very low. Numerous medical, psychological and sociological studies have confirmed this. The connection between Judaism and sobriety is so evident, that the following conversation is reported by Lawrence Kelemen in "Permission to Receive":

When Dr. Mark Keller, editor of the Quarterly Journal of Studies on Alcohol, commented that "practically all Jews do drink, and yet all the world knows that Jews hardly ever become alcoholics," his colleague, Dr. Howard Haggard, director of Yale's Laboratory of Applied Physiology, jokingly proposed converting alcoholics to the Jewish religion in order to immerse them in a culture with healthy attitudes toward drinking!

Perhaps we could suggest that it is precisely because of the use of alcohol in traditional ceremonies (Kiddush, Bris, Purim, etc.), that Jews experience such low rates of alcoholism. This ceremonial usage may actually act like an inoculation - i.e. injecting a safe amount that keeps the disease away.

Of course, as we said earlier, all this needs to be monitored with good common sense. Yet in my personal experience - having been in the company of Torah scholars who were totally drunk on Purim - they acted with extreme gentleness and joy. Amid the Jewish songs and beautiful words of Torah, every year the event is, for me, very special.

Adar 12 marks the dedication of Herod's renovations on the second Holy Temple in Jerusalem in 11 BCE. Herod was king of Judea in the first century BCE who constructed grand projects like the fortresses at Masada and Herodium, the city of Caesarea, and fortifications around the old city of Jerusalem. The most ambitious of Herod's projects was the re-building of the Temple, which was in disrepair after standing over 300 years. Herod's renovations included a huge man-made platform that remains today the largest man-made platform in the world. It took 10,000 men 10 years just to build the retaining walls around the Temple Mount; the Western Wall that we know today is part of that retaining wall. The Temple itself was a phenomenal site, covered in gold and marble. As the Talmud says, "He who has not seen Herod's building, has never in his life seen a truly grand building."

Some people gauge the value of themselves by what they own. But in reality, the entire concept of ownership of possessions is based on an illusion. When you obtain a material object, it does not become part of you. Ownership is merely your right to use specific objects whenever you wish.

How unfortunate is the person who has an ambition to cleave to something impossible to cleave to! Such a person will not obtain what he desires and will experience suffering.

Fortunate is the person whose ambition it is to acquire personal growth that is independent of external factors. Such a person will lead a happy and rewarding life.

With exercising patience you could have saved yourself 400 zuzim (Berachos 20a).

This Talmudic proverb arose from a case where someone was fined 400 zuzim because he acted in undue haste and insulted some one.

I was once pulling into a parking lot. Since I was a bit late for an important appointment, I was terribly annoyed that the lead car in the procession was creeping at a snail's pace. The driver immediately in front of me was showing his impatience by sounding his horn. In my aggravation, I wanted to join him, but I saw no real purpose in adding to the cacophony.

When the lead driver finally pulled into a parking space, I saw a wheelchair symbol on his rear license plate. He was handicapped and was obviously in need of the nearest parking space. I felt bad that I had harbored such hostile feelings about him, but was gratified that I had not sounded my horn, because then I would really have felt guilty for my lack of consideration.

This incident has helped me to delay my reactions to other frustrating situations until I have more time to evaluate all the circumstances. My motives do not stem from lofty principles, but from my desire to avoid having to feel guilt and remorse for having been foolish or inconsiderate.

Today I shall...

try to withhold impulsive reaction, bearing in mind that a hasty act performed without full knowledge of all the circumstances may cause me much distress.

With stories and insights,
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